Google+ Mars Travel: Mars Photo of the Day - May 8 2012

Mars Photo of the Day - May 8 2012

Today's Image of Mars shows a potential landing site for future missions to Mars in Trouvelot Crater. Trouvelot Crater is 154.7km in diameter and located in Oxia Palus Quadrangle, which is known for an abundance of chaos terrain, like Aram Chaos, and numerous outflow channels, most prominently Ares Valles.

Trouvelot Crater is being considered as a possible landing site for the the 2018 joint ESA-Roscosmos ExoMars Rover. One of the features that intrigues scientists are the sedimentary deposits on the crater floor, that many believe could only have been deposited by an abundance of water. On the ground study of these sediments would be able to determine when and how long there was water on the surface and could even provide insight as to where the water went.

Click on this image to see all the other potential landing sites for the ExoMars Rover showcased by Mars Travel.

Credit: HiRISE

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